Golden Globe and BAFTA-winning British actress Miranda Richardson delivered decades of stellar performances on stage and screen, becoming one of the most-respected international actresses of the late 20th century. With an exceptional versatility that staunchly deflected any attempts of "British actress" typecasting, Richardson starred as street toughs, gentile matriarchs and fairy tale queens (of both the good and evil variety) in American and UK film and television productions, earning Academy Award nominations for Louis Malle's "Damage" (1992) and the biopic of writer T.S. Eliot, "Tom & Viv" (1992). Richardson was a member of the stock company of Rowan Atkinson's eccentric "Blackadder" series, but equally at home at the center of character dramas like "The Hours" (2002) or delivering hilarious guest appearances on shows like the bawdy sitcom "Absolutely Fabulous" (BBC, 1992-96; 2001-05). An intelligent, intuitive actress unafraid of exploring emotional extremes and unglamorous reality, Richardson enjoyed steady success with critically-acclaimed projects well past the age when the telephones of one-dimensional fading beauties had stopped ringing.

Golden Globe and BAFTA-winning British actress Miranda Richardson delivered decades of stellar performances on stage and screen, becoming one of the most-respected international actresses of the late 20th century. With an exceptional versatility that staunchly deflected any attempts of "British actress" typecasting, Richardson starred as street toughs, gentile matriarchs and fairy tale queens (of both the good and evil variety) in American and UK film and television productions, earning Academy Award nominations for Louis Malle's "Damage" (1992) and the biopic of writer T.S. Eliot, "Tom & Viv" (1992). Richardson was a member of the stock company of Rowan Atkinson's eccentric "Blackadder" series, but equally at home at the center of character dramas like "The Hours" (2002) or delivering hilarious guest appearances on shows like the bawdy sitcom "Absolutely Fabulous" (BBC, 1992-96; 2001-05). An intelligent, intuitive actress unafraid of exploring emotional extremes and unglamorous reality, Richardson enjoyed steady success with critically-acclaimed projects well past the age when the telephones of one-dimensional fading beauties had stopped ringing.

Played Princess Victoria, Duchess of Kent, opposite Emily Blunt, in "The Young Victoria"

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Education

Southport High School for Girls:
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Bristol Old Vic Theatre School:
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Notes

"The biggest sin in my buisiness is having a label and I will do anything I can to keep a director from saying 'Oh yeah, she's the tart killer type or the society matron type.' I want them to say. 'Oh yeah, she can play anything.'" --Miranda Richardson

"If I'm ever asked what I want from film work, I always say I would like to achieve the versatility I can find in the theatre, and having the same variety." --Miranda Richardson

"I'd heard Miranda was a tough interview. And she was. I think it's part shyness, part smart. She's smarter than most people and doesn't like dumb questions, and she doesn't bother trying to charm you. But when she lets herself relax, she's okay." --James Brady quoted in Parade, February 19, 1995.

"There isn't a Miranda Richardson kind of part. In the past, people have been confused about what I might be right for. But ultimately, that should work for you." --Miranda Richardson to USA Today, March 21, 1995.

"Miranda is totally unegomaniacal. She's highly professional, and I mean that in the best sense." --"Tom and Viv" co-star Rosemary Harris quoted in USA Today, March 21, 1995.